1. February 2018. I’ve always been pretty relaxed about accommodation when I’m on the road. Sometimes I’ll fork out for somewhere nice, other times I’m happy to slum it in basic guesthouses or hostels. But when we got to Shenzhen Wonderboy found himself so disillusioned with our first night at Star Whisper Spacecraft Hotel (it was a bit of a shithole) that he promptly booked himself a luxurious double in this swanky hotel situated in Huaqiang North Road.

2. February 2018. Right across the street from the city’s famous electronics district, the Pavilion’s location is great and, joy of all joys, the woman at reception spoke English! And he was swiftly checked in too with no complications, which felt especially refreshing after the absolute farce of Macau’s Rio Hotel (the worst check in experience I’ve ever had in seventeen years of global travel).

3. February 2018. The Pavilion’s facilities are amazing! There’s a tastefully decorated ground floor restaurant and coffee shop, an in-house bar, fancy Chinese Fusion Restaurant and a fitness centre, spa and sauna. As Wonderboy’s guest, I was able to join him for a swim in the large, indoor heated pool.

4. February 2018. The room wasn’t half bad either, spacious and tastefully decorated. If you’re really highly maintenance you can even order The Butler Service, though that proved a step too far for Wonderboy. I’m still curious as to what exactly it would have entailed!

5. February 2018. This was the overview of Shenzhen from Wonderboy’s window. It sure beat the view of my own feet back in my space capsule. “Mate, the breakfast!!!” he sang in one of several excited voice messages. It turns out that in addition to an excellent Full English and a range of cereals, there were four chef-manned serving stations, including an Omelette Bar, freshly baked pastries, cookies, breads and… “A CHEESEBOARD! LIKE A PROPER CHEESEBOARD!” Wonderboy paid 600RMB (£67/€77/$95) for his night here (NOT including breakfast!). While checking out he was asked to complete a survey of his experience, for which he received an embroidered boxed handkerchief for his troubles. When I checked out of the Spacecraft Hotel, the dude behind reception nodded at me and farted.

For more on my adventures in the city, check out more of My 5s onShenzhen.

Like these? Then why not have a leaf through my zillion articles from all aroundChina.